Unrest in the Desert
by Queenofilangees
Summary: This is about Daine and Numair after RoTG. Daine is spying for the king and has a strange feeling about things going on in the desert. What will she find? Most likely D/N. (Thinking about changing the title)


Disclaimer : I own nothing that Tamora Pierce does. She has infinitely more talent, patience, and skill than I do,but I'l try not to mangle her ideas/characters too badly  
  
A/N - This is set after Realms of the Gods, but before PoTS. (or after, maybe, we'll see.) Please review, and tell me if someone's OOC or if I made a glaring mistake. Thanks!  
  
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Numair Samalin watched the skies attentively from Balor's Needle, the tallest tower of the castle. Slowly, a dark speck in the distance began to take on form. He was able to pick out the shape of a hawk - no, that wasn't quite right. The closer it got, the more shape it took on. Numair saw that it was the body of a hawk, but there was something different about the head. The feathers were the rich brown of dark chocolate, and the beak was a masterpiece, made to shred, tear, or gauge.   
  
The strange bird slowly cirlcled Numair's head. Fearlessly, he held out his arm, as a perch for the bird to land. Numair looked into it's sharp amber eyes. It gave an impatient squawk and with all of the dignity it could seem to muster, proceeded to hop to the floor of the tower near a pile of clothing. The bird pointedly glared at Numair until he sighed and turned his back on it, choosing instead to watch the sunset. It was colored with reds deeper than crimson, and an orange bright enough to take your breath away. Soon, Daine joined him, fully clothed in the garments that had been lying on the floor of the tower, but still lacing her shoes.   
  
"It's beautiful," she commented needlessly. They had both shared the same love for nature since they had met.  
  
"I know," Numair murmurred. "What news is there?"  
  
"None that I can see..." Daine said, looking uneasy. "I'm just getting a feeling that something isn't right. I mean, I know that Alanna and the King have forged an alliance of a strength unable to be contested with the Bazhir, but there is unrest. There are abnormal patterns going on over the desert. You know that I don't get too far toward the middle, but there seem to be strange parties wandering about. I don't think that any ground spies would notice, the desert is so vast. The King is the Voice of the Tribes, so it really can't be any of the Bazhir, he knows of everything that goes on with them. What can be causing this?" Daine looked up at Numair.  
  
He gave her a reassuring gaze and he draped a long arm over her shoulder languidly. For someone of his height, he moved with the grace of one completely in balance, which never ceased to amuse Daine. Sometimes she thought Cloud was right in calling him the Stork-Man. "Not to worry, my sweet," Numair reassured her. "I know that Jonathan will be able to keep things under control. Your work has given us plenty of advance notice before when we needed you. You haven't let the king down yet, just talk to him, make sure he understands what you're saying."  
  
Daine grinned. Numair always seemed to know what to say. She had heard many of the court flirts who would lie to women with their silver tongues to get them in bed, but she knew Numair would never do that. Daine knew that Numair would never lie to her, she trusted him with her life, and he had even saved it once or twice.  
  
Even though Numair was a smooth talker, Daine wasn't exactly sure where their relationship was going, or what it could even be called. She knew that most spoke of the pair as being lovers, but Daine didn't like that term. Friends wasn't strong enough, and Daine had seen him flirt with other ladies, although Daine knew that he hadn't been with another woman, at least since Carthak. Numair had been known to be a "ladies man" so this was comforting to Daine. To her, the only problem that others would see was their age difference. Numair was 12 years her senior, and she seemed to be constantly reminded of it by friends who didn't approve of her relationship, but ever since she was small, the gossip mill wasn't part of the things she cared about.  
  
The odd pair started down the stairs. Daine had never been afraid of heights, but the stairs in Balor's Needle...she wouldn't put a lot of trust in them, so she kept her hand glued to the rail. Numair must have noticed her unease as he slipped a possesive arm around her waist. Daine tried to keep her smile to herself, but it was a lost cause, and decided it would be easier just to show her happiness. By the time the two had reached the bottom, Daine's arm was around Numair's waist and the the couple was moving in step as much as possible for two people of such different heights. Daine laughed to herself, and when Numair asked was what so funny, she explained how they must look to others. He laughed along, and they went back to their quarters.  
  
Even though the door read Veralidaine Sarassri and Numair Samalin, the two had separate sleeping quarters, and both were normally used. Even if only one sleeping quarter was used, things didn't get much farther than kissing; Daine was still a virgin. In her old village, a woman was to have a horrendous reputation if she slept with a man before marrying him, but here, Alanna the Lioness was said to have been the King's lover for years, but she was widely respected, as was the king, although she found the rules to be different for men. Even so, Daine still found parts of Tortall confusing.  
  
Daine went into her quarters and changed while chatting with Numair in the next room. Before supper, the two would visit the king and give their reports. Daine wasn't quite sure what to say, but she wasn't worried. When she first came to Tortall, she had been afraid of royalty, and them looking down on her, but Jonathan and Thayet made her feel at home. Now, Tortall was her home, and Numair part of her family.  
  
Finally, Daine came back into the center room, frustruatedly trying to tie back her hair. Numair stepped in and deftly knotted the wet leather thong around a neat horsetail, a trick he had learned from Daine. She stepped back and twirled waiting for inspection. She had dressed in a comfortable, but well tailored outfit. Her tunic was a deep mahogany, and the breeches a hunter green. Even though she was on friendly terms with the king and queen, she always tried to make an effort if she was going to speak with them. They were still royalty. As she turned, Numair let out a low whistle. "Very nice!" he commented.  
  
"I guess that means you approve." Daine said, blushing. "Let's go, we need to make our report before dinner, and I'm hungry!"  
  
Numair smiled. "As you wish, Magelet." he replied, using her pet name as he led her towards Jonathan's conferencing room.  
  
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Thanks for reading, now please click the little blue button and review! (Even if you didn't like it, please tell me what was bad, I can't improve if everyone says that it's perfect, because I know that it isn't... As does my language arts teacher.) 


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